Army Jacket: Fashion Research

After being given our military jackets to start experimenting with, I decided to research how the military jacket has been used in fashion.

I really love Balmain's embellished take on the military jacket because of how it has been changed from something that is seen as a practical utility garment into a luxury evening-wear jacket.

Above four images: Balmain S/S 2010

Ralph Lauren S/S 2010

Louise Goldin A/W 2010

I find Louise Goldin's military themed knitted jackets really intriguing because of the way that the sport-like pockets and zips contrast with the sharp structured look.

Army Jacket: Original

This was an army jacket we were given to unpick and then make back up on a chair so that we would end up with a completely new shape and garment.

I really like the thick heaviness of the fabric in contrast to the flimsy delicacy of the tights we've been experimenting with so far.

I find the interior of the coat interesting because of the grey panels which almost look like a high-fashion interpretation of a military jacket

The zigzag stitching on the jacket collar above is a practical feature used to give the collar more strength when turned up but could be interpreted into an embroidery pattern

Glue and Cloth: Fashion Research

I decided to do some fashion research on the Glue and Cloth: Mannequin Experiments we did to see how the process could be taken further in fashion

This image below by Nick Knight really reminds me of the Lions Mane Jellyfish I looked at because of the way the fabric shrouds and wraps around the model in various layers that have been gathered, pleated and scrunched up

Lily Donaldson, British Vogue, Nick Knight 2008

This hat almost completely resembles what we have been doing with the tights in the way that the structure seems to hold itself up without any visible help; the same as how the glue keeps the tights structure without being immediately visible

Basso & Brooke A/W 2007

Dior RTW S/S 2010

The garment below by Alexander McQueen really resembles how the tights looked when stretched over the chair and I really like how the models figure has been exaggerated and distorted by the rigid structure of the garments

Alexander McQueen S/S 2007

Alexander McQueen S/S 2008

Glue and Cloth: Research and Inspiration

Whilst we were experimenting with the tights, the outcomes we were getting started to remind me of some different things in nature, such as coral, so I took note and researched them in my own time

The floaty frills and waves of these two corals reminds me of the 

stretched out areas of the tights

The delicacy and formation of these two shells reminds me of the 

laddered areas of tights and the sections that have gathered together 

in a sort of pleat

The Lions Mane Jellyfish particularly reminded me of the tights 

because of the different parts of its body. The main body looks like

 the stretched out areas of the tights that become very translucent 

and the long stringy tentacles resemble the legs of the tights that 

we kept thin and long and finally the frilly section coming out of the

 Jellyfishes body looks somewhat like the sections of tights that

 have shrunk and gathered after being removed from the chair

Glue and Cloth: Mannequin Experimentation

I really enjoyed working with the tights on a mannequin as we were using a completely new material and technique so it was exciting to see what outcomes the technique would produce when placed into the context of fashion

I really like how volume can be created with these tights because of how they have been stretched over the chair and how the voluminous shapes can be used to create unusual silhouettes and distorted body shapes

I really like the two different shoulder details above and below because of the way the tights have gathered; it almost looks as though the tights have been pleated and tacked to get that effect

I like this section above because of how delicate the tights look where they have been laddered, this could look really interesting if done on a larger scale

Glue and Cloth: Chair Construction

Using cling film we covered a chair wrapping it so that it made an interesting structure consisting of twists and panels

Then using two pairs of tights we covered the chair; wrapping, twisting, stretching, laddering and cutting to create an interesting structure. We then coated them in PVA mixed with water in order to hold the shape

When it came to covering the chair with tights we tried to consider it as a frame or structure that we were using rather than 'we're covering a chair in tights'. I think this helped us to be more creative and experimental with the process

During this process we didn't look at anyone else's work, instead just focusing on what we were doing, letting our creativity flow and not over-thinking any of it, taking it one step at a time and providing solutions to any problems we had with construction.

Paper Folding: Mauricio Velasquez Posada

I find Mauricio Velasquez Posada's paper dresses really inspiring because of how he has taken such a simple form of shape making and turned it into fashion. I also really like how they all have the same technique (folding paper) but produce such varied and unique results in each dress. I think that the use of paper for these dresses is key in their structured shape and look and that if the same technique was done using fabric the results would be radically different.